I can become stronger by paying salaries. I have one billion employees!

Chapter 220 Pei Yi: Give me a month, and I'll take over Shanghai! 400 million units sold in a single month!

Chen Yansen sat in the private room of the Prefect of the Capital, drinking tea and waiting for someone.

"Boss, I don't think it's necessary to manufacture for Xiaomi. If you're worried about overcapacity, you might as well reduce the overtime hours for your workers. Anyway, even if we reduce the monthly salary of the workers at Orange Phone Factory by another 30%, they will still be competitive in Shenzhen."

Gao Weilin sat to the side and gently offered his advice.

"Yuncheng, what do you think?" Chen Yansen asked Song Yuncheng with a smile.

"We can take over some of the excess manpower and production capacity by producing peripheral products, such as headphones, phone cases, data cables and power banks."

Song Yuncheng rolled his eyes, pondered for a moment, and then offered a new solution.

Currently, most of the official accessories for Orange phones are provided by third-party suppliers.

"That's a good idea. I'll talk to Lao Cao about it tomorrow. However, we still need to do the OEM business. Since Xiaomi won't agree, let's go to Meizu. I think Huang Zhang would be happy to accept the patent licensing for fast charging, battery management, memory cleaning algorithms, and camera algorithms."

Chen Yansen said with a smile.

Although he praised Song Yuncheng, he had actually discussed the solution that Song Yuncheng had mentioned with Cao Dahua as early as last week.

"Boss, why didn't you mention these things earlier?" Gao Weilin asked, looking puzzled.

In his view, Chen Yansen only mentioned the technical licensing of the memory cleanup algorithm. If he added the licensing of several technical patents as a bargaining chip, Lei Yijun might agree.

"Because it's pointless to bring it up."

Chen Yansen smiled faintly.

Lei Yijun's ability to influence him mentally, and his two rejections of his proposal, indicates that it wasn't a lack of preconditions, but rather that Lei Yijun was inherently resistant to this cooperation model and was overly defensive.

Just then, a middle-aged man wearing a royal blue suit with a down jacket over it walked over.

He first looked up at the name of the private room, and after confirming it several times, he interrupted the three people's conversation: "President Chen, I am Xiao Jun."

Xiao Jun wanted to introduce himself as the COO of Gaode Maps, but then he realized that he had long been marginalized by Cheng Congwu and had lost his COO position for more than half a year.

Chen Yansen looked over upon hearing the sound and sized Xiao Jun up and down.

The other person was in his early forties, of medium build, with a hint of disappointment in his eyes, but his gaze was open and his eyes sharp.

This person is very driven!

Chen Yansen silently commented.

He had already investigated Xiao Jun's resume. Xiao Jun studied radio electronics at Yenching University for his undergraduate degree and business administration at Tsinghua University for his master's degree. He was skilled in technology and management, but lacked experience in power struggles.

"Please have a seat! We only have Mr. Xiao with us today, so let's just have a casual chat."

Chen Yansen smiled and pushed the teacup in front of Xiao Jun, personally pouring him a steaming cup of tea.

"Mr. Chen, I can do it myself." Xiao Jun quickly held up the teacup to show respect.

Looking at Chen Yansen, he felt a warmth rise in his heart.

"I heard that you were the one who decided on the name Gaode?" Chen Yansen put down the teapot and started the conversation very naturally.

"Yes! Gaode was originally a business unit of Datong Industrial. It was only in order to compete with NavInfo for Toyota's pre-installed navigation system that the business unit was spun off."

As for why it's called Gaode, it's just that a friend happens to own a shell company called Gaode, and to save time and simplify the process, we used that name..."

Unaware of what was happening, Xiao Jun inadvertently recounted Gaode's entrepreneurial journey to Chen Yansen without reservation.

"Mr. Xiao has 3% of the shares. At a price of $12.8 per share, once Senlian Capital completes the acquisition, you will receive more than 100 million in cash. I wonder what Mr. Xiao's plans are next?"

Chen Yansen picked up his teacup, took a sip, and then asked.

"I might switch to being an investor, since the internet industry in China is developing rapidly and there are many opportunities."

Xiao Jun thought about it carefully and then answered.

"check it out."

Chen Yansen picked up a document from his right and threw it in front of Xiao Jun.

Xiao Jun didn't say anything, just took it in his hand and casually flipped it open.

This document records the investment projects that Hou Jun and Cheng Congwu privately collaborated on between 2010 and 2012, including the cultural tourism development of Fenghuang Ancient Town.

Xiao Jun felt a chill run down his spine, as if he had fallen into an ice cellar; it was exactly the same as what Chen Yansen had said on the phone.

Hou Jun and Cheng Congwu have never had a falling out!
The main purpose of the two men was to remove him from the management of Gaode Maps.

"Most people with a finance background are like this. Once a product is launched and the business matures, they naturally target the person with the strongest business skills. Mr. Xiao, do you want to take over Gaode again?"

Chen Yansen first made a joke, then asked directly.

In his view, Xiao Jun is exceptionally capable and has a deep understanding of the products and business. Unlike Cheng Congwu's boastful style, Xiao Jun is not only good at management but also at driving the optimization and upgrading of product technology.

Making him the CEO of Gaode Maps is definitely the best choice.

Perhaps Yu Yongfu, the CEO of UC Browser, would also be a good candidate, but after careful consideration, Chen Yansen chose Xiao Jun.

If he doesn't meet my requirements, I can always find someone else.

"Does Mr. Chen mean he wants me to become the CEO of AutoNavi?"

Although Xiao Jun already had a guess in his mind, he still showed surprise when Chen Yansen said it out loud.

“That’s right! Don’t you think it’s interesting?” Chen Yansen asked with a smile.

Xiao Jun also laughed out loud.

Yes, Hou Jun and Cheng Congwu conspired to kick him out of Gaode, but Chen Yansen invited him back.

Thinking of the surprised expressions on Hou Jun and Cheng Congwu's faces when they found out, Xiao Jun could no longer suppress the smile on his lips.

"Mr. Chen, you don't mind that I'm the loser in the internal power struggle at Gaode?"

Xiao Jun held back for a long time, but finally asked the question.

"Internal strife? That's just because Hou Jun isn't protecting you. Besides, once Senlian Capital acquires Gaode, as long as you don't make any mistakes, I will continue to support you."

"When you're out working, if your boss protects you, things will go smoothly; otherwise, you'll find it hard to get anywhere. Don't you understand this principle?"

Chen Yansen asked back with a smile.

As for Xiao Jun's lack of skill in internal power struggles, he actually saw it as a good thing.

He doesn't want to hire a CEO who divides the company into old and new factions, spending all his time playing power struggles instead of doing business.

"Thank you for thinking so highly of me, Mr. Chen." After thinking it through, Xiao Jun stood up abruptly and bowed to Chen Yansen.

"Congratulations on rejoining Gaode." Chen Yansen stood up and pressed him back into his seat. He knew in his heart that with Xiao Jun in charge of Gaode, Senlian would take over very smoothly.

After Gao Weilin saw that the matter had been settled, he waved to the waiter outside the door.

Before long, a variety of exquisite dishes were served.

The group toasted each other, and the bottle of baijiu was quickly emptied.

"Mr. Xiao, I'm handing over Gaode Maps to you. Once you've finished the acquisition process, I hope your first task upon taking office will be to announce a free strategy for low-end individual users."

Chen Yansen put down his wine glass and solemnly gave his instructions.

free?

Xiao Jun was startled. Gaode's revenue was already low. If it were to implement a free policy across the B2C market, wouldn't its revenue continue to decline?
"Boss, this means revenue will drop by at least 6% to 8%!"

Xiao Jun's face was stern, his brows furrowed, as he offered his well-intentioned advice.

He's a smart man; he changes his way of addressing people very quickly.

“I can accept this loss. I hope you can reverse the revenue ratio between B2B and B2C within two years.”

Chen Yansen continued.

Gaode's total revenue last year was US$1.27 million, with in-car navigation accounting for the majority, about 65%; mobile and internet location services accounted for US$2700 million, or 21%, of which personal navigation business accounted for 6.3% of total revenue.

Xiao Jun didn't quite understand why Chen Yansen would voluntarily give up a portion of the profits, but he had already agreed to become the CEO of Gaode Maps. After the new boss emphasized this again, he stopped asking questions and arguing.

"Okay, boss, I understand." Xiao Jun nodded.

Chen Yansen thought that instead of waiting for Baidu Maps to use a free strategy to force Gaode to change, it would be better to take the initiative first, which would not only earn him a good reputation, but also allow him to seize more market share in advance.

The dinner party didn't end until 9:30.

When Gao Weilin heard that his boss was going back to the hotel, he immediately breathed a sigh of relief, finally able to go back and rest earlier.

Halfway there, Lei Yijun called.

After exchanging a few words, Chen Yansen hung up the phone. Although he was puzzled as to why Lei Yijun's thoughts had changed so drastically in just a few hours, he didn't care as long as the result was positive.

"Boss, did Lei Yijun agree?" Gao Weilin vaguely heard a couple of sentences and asked tentatively.

"I'll have to trouble you again, Mr. Gao. Have the legal department draft a contract tomorrow. I'll hand this over to Cao Dahua, but you'll need to keep a close eye on the signing process."

Chen Yansen hummed in agreement, and then gave the instructions.

“Okay, boss.” Gao Weilin readily agreed.

Half an hour later, the car returned to the Marriott Hotel parking lot.

"You must be tired these past few days."

As soon as they got back to the room, Song Yuncheng pulled Chen Yansen to sit down on the sofa and massaged his shoulders and neck.

tired?
Chen Yansen chuckled; he hadn't felt tired in a long time.

"Let me give you a massage too."

After Chen Yansen finished enjoying himself, he switched places with Song Yuncheng, but as he pressed, his hand unconsciously slid down.

Song Yuncheng's face flushed, her eyes watery, and she turned to look at Chen Yansen, saying, "Your massage technique is improper."

"There's nothing I can do, I just can't control myself." Chen Yansen chuckled and picked up Song Yuncheng.

The two lay on the sofa, enjoying the bustling night view of Yanjing.

"Not here, let's go back to the bedroom." Song Yuncheng squeezed her legs together and pleaded softly, her neck even turning pink.

Chen Yansen ignored him and simply drew the curtains.

A few minutes later, two tiny handprints were imprinted on the glass.

……

……

At dawn the next day, the distant sky began to lighten with the pale glow of dawn.

Chen Yansen got up from the sofa, picked up a pair of shorts from the floor, and put them on. Song Yuncheng was still fast asleep.

He walked into the living room in his slippers, turned on his computer, first checked the work reports of each subsidiary, and then glanced at the total sales of Orange D1 and Orange C2 phones, which were just one step away from 400 million.

Regarding the preparation of Factory No. 4, Cao Dahua selected a group of people from the middle and senior management of Shenzhen to go to Luzhou to handle the preliminary business registration procedures and recruitment work.

Zuo Hongyu was busy contacting equipment suppliers to set up production lines for the new factory.

On the other hand, Kuaipao only took five days to remove Ele.me from Xuhui District.

Ele.me, which couldn't compete with Kuaipao in terms of price and delivery speed, was quickly abandoned by users.

After all, the underlying logic of the food delivery model is to fulfill users' online orders offline.

The stronger the ability to fulfill obligations, the higher the evaluation in the minds of users.

Seeing that he couldn't compete with Kuaipao in terms of delivery speed, Zhang Xuhao limited the number of orders a rider could place. As a result, the speed increased, but the riders' hourly wages dropped significantly.

If you can't make money, who would want to work for Ele.me?

Even though Zhang Xuhao readjusted the salaries and benefits for the rider team, people still kept switching to Kuaipao!
"Boss, give me a month, and I guarantee I'll take over the Shanghai market."

Pei Yi made this statement with great conviction in his work email.

Chen Yansen chuckled to himself, thinking to himself: Acquiring Kuaipao was the right move. If we had started from scratch, Ele.me would probably have already become a force to be reckoned with before we even built up the team.

If we want to suppress it again later, we will have to spend ten or a hundred times more money and effort.

Although Ele.me has now received investment from Alibaba, Alibaba is not yet listed, so it remains to be seen how much funding and traffic resources it is willing to provide to support Ele.me.

Chen Yansen left the hotel at 9:00 a.m.

Guided by Gao Weilin, the car arrived at an office building on Zhichun Road in the HD district.

“ByteDance’s office is on the 14th floor, and there are currently about 30 people working there. They are fully committed to developing the Lingxi Browser.”

Gao Weilin explained softly.

Chen Yansen glanced out the car window and saw Zhang Yiming leading a round-faced, crew-cut young man, walking briskly towards them.

(End of this chapter)